Have Pen, Will Travel: A Solo Trip Report--Includes Dining and CSR Reviews and Photos! About This Page:

[scrappyjae]

CSR is on my list for a possible stay. I really want BC, but after hearing so much about the bus problems, not sure if I want to deal with that. We are used to regular, fast bus service.

Boy, did you get alot done. Can't wait to hear about Kona, as we have not eaten there before. It is on my list. This list is getting bigger and bigger every time I real a trip report!

[lauriep]

You're right... WDW solo totally rocks, as does arriving at the parks at opening! I love the photo of the queue at BTMRR! Maybe it's a good thing you weren't crazy about Dole Whip. Each trip there are new things to try and rarely can you cross one of the old ones off ths list!

[debrabrown]

A great first morning and hooray for Winnie the Pooh!

[kelleigh1]

We tried the Dole Whip on our last trip and thought it was just ok. I'd heard so much about it and while we enjoyed it more than you did (it seems), we probably wouldn't go out of our way to get one.

Love the People Mover for the "oh my achy feet" break.

[jennie622]

I agree on the Dole Whip. It was good but didn't curl my toes ya know what I mean?? It might have been a combination of cold, rainy weather mixed with the anticipation from reading all the raves about it. I'll give it another go in October.

Isn't the interactive area for the Pooh ride adorable??

[elbodans]

Originally Posted by jennie622

I agree on the Dole Whip. It was good but didn't curl my toes ya know what I mean?? It might have been a combination of cold, rainy weather mixed with the anticipation from reading all the raves about it. I'll give it another go in October.

Isn't the interactive area for the Pooh ride adorable??

i think that was my issue with the dole whip--i was expecting angels to fly out of the sky as soon as i tasted it...and they didn't. it wasn't BAD, it just wasn't great. perhaps i should have tried a float? maybe next time! though i never found the carrot cake cookies i was looking for, and that's a DEFINITE for next time. i also cannot believe i didn't have a school bread...but there's a reason for that (which i'll share during the epcot part of the report).

[elbodans]

Day 1 Part 3--Lunch at Kona Cafe

Before leaving for the Polynesian, I wandered around the Walt statue at the base of the castle and took some photos...



I’ve seen photos like the one above, but I didn’t realize that the statues were so small in ‘real life’--it’s all about perspective and camera angle.

I then made my way to the monorail. This was to be my first time riding the monorail, and I was surprised by how long it took. We stopped several times--once for quite a while in the Contemporary.



It took over 20 minutes to get from the Magic Kingdom to the Poly, which was shocking--I thought the point of staying at a monorail resort was convenience. It took less time to get from my room to the gates via bus.

Fortunately I left with plenty of time before my lunch reservation, which gave me plenty of time to wander around the resort. After a call from work intruded upon my experience (and gave me a minor panic attack), I strolled outside to check out the grounds...



I’d love to stay here some day--it was so peaceful, I could imagine hanging out at the resort all day and not going to a park at all.

My lunch reservation was for 1:15, and I found it odd that even though the restaurant was 90% empty, they made me wait a good five minutes before they seated me. They also seated me way back in the corner of the restaurant--which bothered me not at all. This was possibly the most private meal of the trip. Here’s my seat...



While I knew I shouldn’t get an appetizer and an entree, I just couldn’t help myself. I ordered the Coconut Curry Shrimp soup, and this particular dish (the first ‘real’ food of my trip) wins the award for best presentation...



I felt so badly ruining the sour cream Mickey! I thought this was a cute touch. The soup itself was quite good--thicker than I’d imagined it, with a very noticeable curry flavor. It wasn’t an Indian or Thai style curry either--it was straight up curry powder. Anyone who is a fan of any kind of curry typically has a preference, and to be honest the curry powder flavor is my least favorite--but this soup was still quite good. The sweetness of the coconut went rather well with the curry, powder though it may have been.

For my main course I had the Pulled Pork Tacos, which aren’t really tacos at all as they are served on a very flat bread instead of taco shells. This bread was extremely good (kind of like a chalupa, actually) and the pork was tasty as well. The ‘slaw’ that was served on the side--cabbage and carrot and raw onion--went right onto the tacos. It was quite good.



Oddly, my favorite aspect of this meal was the pasta salad. As an self-titled food snob, it almost hurts to admit this--but it really was very good. There was something about the pasta itself--the texture, maybe--that made this pasta salad special. I’m usually not one for side dishes (or pasta salad in general) but I found myself unable to stop eating it.

This was my first sit-down solo meal of the trip, and I have to say that Disney is a great place to dine solo. While I eat alone in nice restaurants all the time--and so I'm quite used to it--there was something extra nice about being alone in WDW. Perhaps it was the nice waiters, or the fact that practically anyone walking by is smiling, or the fact that Kona Cafe is open to the lobby--I'm not sure. But meal number one was a success!

While I plan to do a separate post for my DDP vs OOP cost comparison, this meal (which included a glass of Beaujolais) was $34.80, including the tip. The wine was $9 of that, so really the meal was $25.80. But I felt I deserved that glass of wine. After all, I accomplished so much in one morning!

[Principessa_di_Fata]

That soup looks great! I don't like coconut, at all, but that soup sure looks appealing. I love love love Kona Cafe. As a matter of fact, you're making me think of my last meal there. Now I'm all hungry again, darn it! LOL!

[MelissaSue]

The monorails are awesome, but sometimes very, very slow. I think it's sometimes quicker to walk to the Contemporary, and then get on the monorail there.

Also, that soup is super sexy.

[dwonderz]

I just got all caught up ! We stayed at CSR on our last trip (which also happened to be our first) and really, really liked it!

We stayed in Cabanas 8B also, about 10 or 15 rooms down - we really liked the location also! PassPorter recommended it in the 2010 edition !

[mickeyforlife]

WELL I GUESS I'M ONE OF THOSE TOO, BECAUSE I DIDN'T LIKE THE DOLE WHIP EITHER. OH WELL TO EACH THEIR OWN.

[disney_duke]

Love all the details about dining alone. While I had a solo trip once, I only dined alone at Sci-Fi - which is easily distracting for anybody. So I'm glad to hear about that part. Plus, excited to try Kona this October too!!!

[elbodans]

Originally Posted by disney_duke

Love all the details about dining alone. While I had a solo trip once, I only dined alone at Sci-Fi - which is easily distracting for anybody. So I'm glad to hear about that part. Plus, excited to try Kona this October too!!!

i'm glad you're enjoying my odder details! i thought there surely must be people out there who wonder what the solo dining experience is like. i only had one slightly negative experience this whole trip and, surprisingly, it was at a CS restaurant!

it really helps to become comfortable with dining alone at home, before you leave. plus, i had my iPhone (and my blog) and my notebook to keep me company!

[elbodans]

Day 1 Part 4--Back to the MK!

After lunch, I took a quick monorail ride back to the Magic Kingdom. Here I discovered the benefit of the monorail--in less than five minutes, I was walking through the gate!

During lunch, I made a list of things I still needed/wanted to do, and they included:

Mickey’s Philharmagic
Tom Sawyer Island
Hall of Presidents

I started with Philharmagic, which I’d not seen previously. I realize it is very little kid-ish, but I LOVED it. Possibly more than my previous favorite 3D show, Tough to Be a Bug. The only word I can think of to describe it is ‘delightful’. It was also surprisingly good for my research.

I then checked out the Hall of Presidents. Now, it is true that this seems like the perfect attraction for my research, but it wasn’t. It went past educational straight into boring. I really liked the movie section, but the presidential roll call at the end almost did me in. Sorry. There are just many better uses for animitronic (spelling?) presidents than that. I did love the Washington-Obama conversation, however.

I then decided to use my previously gathered fastpass for Pooh and ride it once again, just because. Man I love that ride! I took notes this time through, and let me tell you--taking notes whilst bouncing with Tigger is quite challenging! My notes are very...wobbly.

I then checked out Tom Sawyer Island, and found this very relaxing spot to write for a while...



If you are looking for somewhere to relax in MK, this is the spot. Sure, you have to cross a rather difficult, bouncy bridge to get here, but it is totally worth it to have some peace and quiet in the middle of a busy theme park.

It was in this place that I decided there was no way I was going to make it to park closing. I had 8:15 dinner reservation at Artist Point, and it was a little after 4:00 at this point. I was already beat. I managed to use my iPhone to change my reservations to 6:20, a much more reasonable time in my opinion.

Having decided my time at MK was almost over, I thought I’d ride my personal favorite ride yet again--BTMRR. As I exited the ride, the sun was beginning to set...



I’ll admit to giving up my research for a while here and taking some time browsing the shops on my way back down Main Street. I didn’t buy anything, though--mainly because I couldn’t find the shirt I was looking for (I wanted one of those classic Mickey ringer t-shirts). I then found my way to the boat launch for Wilderness Lodge.

It is important to note that at this time, the sun is setting...and I’m wearing a sun dress. I was getting COLD! My original plan was to take the boat to WL, have dinner, and then take the boat back to MK to catch the bus. After waiting for the boat for at least a half hour (during which time I chatted with two extremely delightful local women having a girl’s day out) and enduring the freezing cold ride to WL, I decided to try to get a cab back.



Because I waited for the boat for so long, I was actually quite late for my dinner reservation--I arrived around 6:40 and stopped for a minute or two to enjoy the beauty of the resort.




Regardless, I was seated at Artist Point promptly, and ordered a drink. This was drink number one...



It was called Raspberry Rapids, and was basically like a Pina Colada with a hint of raspberry. In retrospect, it really wasn’t the drink I was looking for--more like dessert than a beverage. So I ordered a glass of chardonnay, which the waiter was very helpful in selecting for me (I told him I wanted ‘something very dry’, and he brought me a British Columbia Chardonnay that was quite good--if expensive!)

During dinner, my husband texted me that he was out for dinner with my parents at a private club to which they belong--the kind of private club with fake paneling on the walls and 75-cent beers. I texted him back ‘sorry, I’m having dinner somewhere much more expensive’. His reply? ‘Get the filet. You deserve it.’

Best. Husband. Ever.

So I ordered whatever I wanted, but ordered poorly. I chose the salmon, not thinking the way I typically do when out for dinner. I usually try to order things I don’t or can’t make at home (thus, I should have had the venison). I make salmon all the time, and this salmon dish, while quite good, wasn’t very different from meals I have at home weekly. Again, not a bad meal, just a poor choice.




I would definitely go back to Artist Point, however. It reminded me a lot of the Yachtsman in atmosphere, and we loved it there. It was probably the most quiet meal of my entire trip. It was also the most expensive. Because the sugary drink was $10 and the glass of Chardonnay was $12, the total bill with tip came to...brace yourself...$73.04. It was very good that I had my husband’s blessing for that meal! However, as it was so pricey, I vowed to try to avoid similar meals for the duration of the trip (and was mostly successful!)

Did I mind eating there solo? Not at all. They seated me kind of off to the side, with a view of the entire dining room. I’d suggest it to other solo travelers in a heartbeat.

After dinner I checked out the lobby for a while,




and then ventured out to the valet area where I hoped I’d be able to get a cab. I asked the attendant if it was possible to call a cab for me, and I swear to god the man whistled and cab appeared out of nowhere. It was like Harry Potter level magic--the Hogworts Taxi or something. The cab took 10 minutes, and dropped me off right at my building. Best $20 I’ve ever spent (it was actually only $13, but I let him keep the change from a 20--I have taxi tipping issues, I know.)

I had big plans for my evening, mainly involving organizing and typing up my research, and maybe even starting this trip report. Alas, it was not to be. I remained awake long enough to wash my face, and was snoring.

Honestly, despite all I accomplished, I did regret not getting more done. So--what do you think? Was it a productive day?

Next Post--Day 2: Epcot, Open to Close!

[Cam22]

Catching up on your TR! Great start to your research as Day 1 seems to have been quite full of notes and first time attractions!